A D.C. police officer shot and killed a festival-goer's dog amid hundreds of onlookers in Adams Morgan on Sunday afternoon in an incident that was either completely justified or totally unnecessary, depending on whom you ask.

This much, witnesses say, is clear: Sometime after noon on Sunday, two dogs started snapping at each other in the middle of a crowd enjoying cheese fries and funnel cake at the annual Adams Morgan Day festival on 18th Street NW. D.C. police officers soon got involved, and at some point, one of them shot and killed the larger dog, described as either a pit bull or Shar-Pei mix.

The disagreement is in the details.

Aaron Block, 25, of Dupont Circle said he was walking his 2-year-old Shar-Pei mix, Parrot, up 18th Street when the dog suddenly turned around and bit a poodle that was passing by. He said he separated the two dogs -- cutting his hand inside Parrot's mouth in the process -- and was subduing his dog when police arrived.

That's when a D.C. police officer took over, putting his knee in the middle of Parrot's back while he pulled the dog's forelegs behind him, Block said. He said that the officer then grabbed Parrot by his neck and threw him over a banister at the Brass Knob antique store and that just as the dog righted itself, the officer pulled out his gun and fired. Parrot was "a full 12 to 15 steps away," Block said, and was "making no aggressive overtures." The dog, he noted, "doesn't handle stairs well."

"The officer drew his gun in an unnecessary act of cowboy gunslinging law enforcement and shot my dog amidst a crowd of thousands," said Block, who was fostering Parrot while he was waiting to be adopted through the Lucky Dog Animal Rescue. "The problems here are almost too numerous to count."

Block's account is supported by at least one witness, Jennifer Naideth, 29, who was in town from Los Angeles selling cosmetics at the festival. She called the shooting "so unnecessary and so violent," adding that "there was no human life in danger."

Police and others had a different perspective.

Jacob Kishter, commander of the 3rd Police District, said that once the officer pushed the dog down the stairwell, "the dog immediately turns and runs at the officer aggressively." The officer, 25-year-veteran Scott Fike, fired one shot, fatally wounding the dog, which police described as a pit bull.

"It's definitely going to be justified based on everything that we know," Kishter said, adding that police interviewed the officer, the owners of both dogs and other officers on scene.

The police account also has witness support.

Tony De Pass, 67, a former D.C. police officer who lives in Northwest, said that the dog was charging directly at him when Fike drew his gun and fired and that "if the officer hadn't shot the dog, the dog would have got one of us, either me or the officer."

"What he did, I would have done the same damn thing," De Pass said.

Block, though, said he sees the police's response as an attempt to cover up what he considers the "executing" of his pet. He said that he would walk with Parrot to and from work every day and that he was a "very people-friendly dog, with absolutely no bite history."

The incident unfolded before hundreds of revelers at the heart of the Adams Morgan celebration, disrupting an otherwise peaceful afternoon. Eric Jost, 26, of Cleveland Park said he watched a young girl with a butterfly painted on her face become "hysterical" as she "witnessed it all."

Soleiman Askarinam, the owner of Spaghetti Garden on 18th Street, said the day's revelry was suddenly punctuated with screams and angry dogs barking, then a gunshot.

"For a second," he said, "it was very scary."

"I don't have any idea if my dogs respect me or not, but they're greedy and I have their stuff." -- Patty Ruzzo

"Dogs don't want to control people. They want to control their own lives." --John Bradshaw

Darn you Matt! Hot, and on-the-ball! *shakes fist* I was just coming here to post this!

An Update On ParrotBy bgrady | Published: September 13, 2010

We at Lucky Dog are truly amazed and humbled by the outpouring of support we have received in the wake of Parrot’s tragic and unwarranted death. We have received numerous questions about the incident, and, because news outlets have varied significantly in recounting what happened, we have spoken to as many eye witnesses as possible, and have requested and obtained the official police report. We believe there are a few things to note in this report, found on page 2.

1. The report only one alleged bite – that to Officer Fike. The injury is classified as an abrasion and described as scratching on the hand and wrist. Officer Fike declined any medical care resulting from his injury. Many eye witnesses state that Parrot did not bite or even attempt to bite anyone at any point during the police intervention.

2. Aaron Block was not bitten. The police report confirms this as do Aaron’s own statements.

3. According to multiple eye witnesses, Parrot had already been subdued and was being held securely by his foster, Aaron Block, when the police arrived on the scene. Parrot was not “out of control.”

4. Parrot did not charge the officer after being thrown down the concrete stairwell. A witness who was standing on the Brass Doorknob’s porch saw what transpired in the stairwell. He told us that Parrot was stunned from the fall and had only just gotten to his feet when the officer drew his gun and opened fire without provocation.

“There are alot of comments being generated on this tragedy, some factual and some not. What I can add is contradictory to the comment attributed to Jacob Kishter, Commander of the 3rd Police District and reported in the Washington Post today – “once the officer pushed the dog down the stairwell” – is not at all what happened. As seen in the photo showing the officer had control of the dog, he held the top of dog’s head and the skin on his back and walked over to the stairwell railing and THREW the dog from chest height down to the bottom – a height of between 9 and 10 feet. This I saw because I was standing at the doorway of the business where the dog was killed. As I turned away, in 1 – 3 seconds a single shot rang out. I then went out on the platform above the stairwell, and saw the dying dog’s head was nearly on top of the floor drain next to the locked gate at the bottom of the steps FACING away from the steps..”

This write up from the rescue just makes me SICK!! Threw Parrot down concrete steps before he shot him!! Such horrendous, blatant cruelty from a person we should be able to trust as an officer of the law. So very horrible and sad.

Ugh. I have heard about this and cannot bring myself to read all the details.I saw a picture of the cop that had his knee behind the dog's neck and was detaining it...it was ridiculous.I am speechless at the actions that those who are hired to serve and protect are allowed to take nowadays.

Amazing. You guys know the press is absolutely full of crap whenever they report a "pit bull attack". Yet you believe what they write whenever someone shoots a "poor, defenseless dog".

Monday morning quarterbacking the actions of an officer with the benefit of hindsight and elapsed time is weak shit.

"My first priority will be to reinstate the assault weapons ban PERMANENTLY as soon as I take office...I intend to work with Congress on a national no carry law, 1 gun a month purchase limits, and bans on all semi-automatic guns."-Barack Obama"When in doubt, whip it out."-Nuge

DemoDick wrote:Amazing. You guys know the press is absolutely full of crap whenever they report a "pit bull attack". Yet you believe what they write whenever someone shoots a "poor, defenseless dog".

Monday morning quarterbacking the actions of an officer with the benefit of hindsight and elapsed time is weak shit.

Hmmm... I wasn't there personally, so I can't comment on this particular case, but - I've had my fair share of encounters w/POs; and at the end of the day they are people first, POs second.I met two officers in FL who weren't in the least bit concerned about Mick (who was shut away in a bedroom, but doing his Cujo impression) as long as he didn't pose an immediate threat to them or anyone else.I also met Officer Knucklehead who felt threatened by Sepp and Faust who were secured on my gated porch, but barking... No one entity is made up of all saints or all foes, and there are always three sides to every story.

ALWAYS assuming the best OR the worst, depending on what side of the fence you're on, and blindly defending whichever "group" you belong to - that's weak shit.

amazincc wrote:ALWAYS assuming the best OR the worst, depending on what side of the fence you're on, and blindly defending whichever "group" you belong to - that's weak shit.

I hope that wasn't directed at me.

Demo Dick

"My first priority will be to reinstate the assault weapons ban PERMANENTLY as soon as I take office...I intend to work with Congress on a national no carry law, 1 gun a month purchase limits, and bans on all semi-automatic guns."-Barack Obama"When in doubt, whip it out."-Nuge

amazincc wrote:ALWAYS assuming the best OR the worst, depending on what side of the fence you're on, and blindly defending whichever "group" you belong to - that's weak shit.

I hope that wasn't directed at me.

Demo Dick

Let me rephrase... ALWAYS assuming the best OR the worst, depending on what side of the fence one is on, and blindly defending whichever "group" one belongs to - that's weak shit.

Not all Pit Bulls are mushballs who wouldn't use their teeth, depending on the situation.Not all POs are rational people who wouldn't use their guns, depending on the situation.Not all reporters are unbiased and non-judgemental, depending on the situation.

The dog COULD HAVE been a threat... or not.The PO COULD HAVE been a trigger-happy asshat... or not.Elevating EITHER to saint-hood status after the fact is just not a common sense approach, IMO.

I wasn't there, and I didn't see it.But you automatically defended the PO. Maybe you're right... but maybe you're not.

Monday morning quarterbacking the actions of an officer with the benefit of hindsight and elapsed time is weak shit.

Since you are a PO AND a Pit Bull owner/advocat I was surprised that you would jump to conclusions so quickly, that's all.

"My first priority will be to reinstate the assault weapons ban PERMANENTLY as soon as I take office...I intend to work with Congress on a national no carry law, 1 gun a month purchase limits, and bans on all semi-automatic guns."-Barack Obama"When in doubt, whip it out."-Nuge

Monday morning quarterbacking the actions of an officer with the benefit of hindsight and elapsed time is weak shit.

Your response to the media reports and the ensuing "oh, the poor dog" posts. And you're right - not ONE person wrote or posted that the PO might have been justified in shooting this dog... and he might very well HAVE been. But, what if he wasn't?Blanket statements are a pet peeve of mine, no matter what they're in regards to.

Monday morning quarterbacking the actions of an officer with the benefit of hindsight and elapsed time is weak shit.

Your response to the media reports and the ensuing "oh, the poor dog" posts. And you're right - not ONE person wrote or posted that the PO might have been justified in shooting this dog... and he might very well HAVE been. But, what if he wasn't?Blanket statements are a pet peeve of mine, no matter what they're in regards to.

Maybe I misunderstood your intent.

You did misunderstand. I wasn't defending his actions at all. I don't know enough about the situation to do so. I was stating that it is weak to condemn him based on the information available.

Demo Dick

"My first priority will be to reinstate the assault weapons ban PERMANENTLY as soon as I take office...I intend to work with Congress on a national no carry law, 1 gun a month purchase limits, and bans on all semi-automatic guns."-Barack Obama"When in doubt, whip it out."-Nuge

I stand by my statement. No, I was not there either, but IF the accounting that I read IS true, it's disgusting. Regardless of who is faulted, it is sad and you can bet human error is the cause.

BTW, I didn't think I read a "media" account. I thought what I read was written up by the rescue and posted on the rescue's website. Wouldn't that be kind of like me writing up a description of an incident and posting it on my website?